1. Field of the Embodiments of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention relate generally to driving assistance and, more specifically, to a roadway projection system.
2. Description of the Related Art
A modern vehicle may be equipped with a wide spectrum of different tools that provide information to the driver in order to assist with the act of driving. At one end of the spectrum, almost all vehicles are equipped with a speedometer, a tachometer, a temperature gauge, and other fundamental instruments. The information provided by such instruments may assist the driver of a vehicle with the immediate control of the vehicle by providing feedback that reflects the instantaneous operating condition of that vehicle (i.e., at a very short time frame).
At the other end of the spectrum, many modern vehicles also are equipped with navigation systems that rely on global positioning system (GPS) data to provide navigation information. The information provided by such navigation systems is meant to assist with the high-level act of navigation by indicating a sequence of driving actions that the driver should perform in order to properly navigate from one location to another. Such assistance is relevant at a much longer time frame compared to the time frame within which the instruments mentioned above are used.
The two different types of systems discussed above provide useful information that is relevant at their respective short and long time frames. However, neither system is capable of providing assistance with driving actions that occur at a “medium” time frame falling somewhere between the aforementioned short and long time frames. For example, a speedometer may assist the driver with controlling the instantaneous speed of the vehicle during a turn (in an immediate context), and a navigation system may assist the driver with determining where to make the turn (in a global context), yet neither tool is capable of assisting the driver with the mechanics of performing the turn itself. In general, conventional approaches to assisting a driver with the act of driving typically fall short of providing assistance related to specific driving actions, including turning, merging, traveling in traffic, and so forth.
As the foregoing illustrates, what would be useful is an approach for providing assistance with specific driving actions to a driver of a vehicle.